The Dark-eyed Junco is an abundant and widespread species of Canada's wooded habitats. Dubbed a systematist's "nightmare", the species currently contains several recognizable groups, each with their own subspecies. Prior to 1973, the species was split into five distinct species (Nolan et al. 2002). Results from the Christmas Bird Count and the Breeding Bird Survey suggest that the population in Canada has shown little overall change since 1970.
One of the most numerous birds in North America, this generalist species remains abundant across its wide breeding range. The Dark-eyed Junco uses a wide range of habitats dispersed over much of North America (Nolan et al. 2002). Currently, there are few known conservation concerns for the species.
Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:
Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.